


How Many Ninja Does it Take to Put Up Christmas Lights

by theskywasblue



Series: 12 Days of Christmas Challenge [4]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-05-18
Updated: 2010-05-18
Packaged: 2017-10-09 13:08:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/87837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theskywasblue/pseuds/theskywasblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Christmas tree lights + jutsu = disaster</p>
            </blockquote>





	How Many Ninja Does it Take to Put Up Christmas Lights

**Author's Note:**

> For the 2006 12 Days of Christmas Challenge on the Kakairu Community at LiveJournal

Kakashi paused and looked up from his book at a curse from the other side of the room. What he saw was Iruka sitting cross-legged in front of the Christmas tree that now dominated a large portion of the living room, surrounded by a tangled pile of Christmas tree lights that he had pulled out of some ancient box of decorations salvaged long ago from his parent's house and hidden away in a storage locker for years. There was a stray wire draped over his ponytail and his jaw was set in fierce determination as he fought with the snarled mass. The sight would have been not only endearing but highly amusing if not for the fact that Iruka had been fighting with that same tangle of lights for nearly an hour without making any discernable progress.

"Are you sure you don't want any help?" Kakashi offered for what had to be the tenth time at least.

"I'm _positive_," Iruka half-snarled through his teeth, "Once these are up then you can…I'm sure I'll have it in a minute."

Kakashi scratched his head and bit back a sigh. At this rate they were never going to get the tree decorated. Iruka was sometimes too stubborn for his own good, didn't know when to suck up his pride and ask for help. It was because of his deep-set desire to prove himself, also known as "former class clown syndrome".

Naruto had the same problem.

"Dammit!" Iruka shouted suddenly, "I just untangled you!"

He was gesturing threateningly at a particularly stubborn knot in the cord, giving it his best "how-dare-you-defy-me" look.

Kakashi chuckled softly and set down his book, unfolding himself from the chair. He crossed the room, dropped himself down next to Iruka and took up a lapful of the tangled mass, "You need help."

"Really Kakashi I…"

Kakashi put a finger on the younger man's lips, silencing him, "I'm helping."

Iruka growled and threw up his hands in frustration, "Fine, see what you can do. I'm starting to think we should just throw them on the tree in a big clump."

Kakashi chuckled, "Interpretive decorating."

Iruka groaned, exasperated, and sprawled backwards onto the floor.

Kakashi set to work trying to untangle the lights, confident that he could have it done in a few minutes – he was, after all, a genius; but it proved to be more difficult than he had anticipated. He soon found himself grumbling softly and biting back frustrated curses. He had honestly seen rope traps less complicated than the mess that the lights were in.

_Rope traps…_

Inspiration struck with a vengeance, Kakashi grinned triumphantly, _stupid lights…I'll teach you to mess with a genius shinobi._

Since Iruka was lying down, he didn't see Kakashi forming the hand seals, but he definitely felt the pop of chakra, and sat up with a start.

"Kakashi what are you…." He paused, blinked, and then quickly covered both eyes with his hands and bit his lip.

Unfortunately for Kakashi, Christmas lights were either made rope-untying jutsu-resistant by design, or those particular Christmas lights were so hopelessly tangled as to be beyond all help. In any case, the jutsu had backfired spectacularly, leaving Kakashi tangled up in the Christmas lights like a cat that had been rolling in a basket of yarn.

Kakashi scowled deeply, "Stupid Christmas lights."

Iruka peeked out at him from between his fingers, then quickly closed his eyes again, biting back a laugh with an obvious snort, his shoulders trembling from the effort.

"Oh just laugh already!" Kakashi snapped.

But Iruka didn't just laugh, he roared, his face turning bright red as he gasped for air between great bone-shaking peals that made Kakashi's ears ring.

"I'm glad you find my misery so amusing…" Kakashi grumbled, and with his pride now severely wounded, began to pout.

"Oh Kakashi," Iruka sighed between gulps for air, wiping tears of mirth from his brown eyes, "It's not that…you just look so, so…"

"Pathetic," Kakashi supplied.

"No," Iruka soothed, kissing his cheek tenderly between tangles of green wire, "You look cute."

Kakashi made an irritable noise and folded his arms across his chest.

Iruka took hold of a strand of lights sitting atop Kakashi's head and removed them carefully, "Come on, let's get you out of there and we'll go buy some new lights."

-End-


End file.
